What’s the First Thing You’ll Do When…

…the world reopens? I’ll be honest, I’m probably gonna scoot over to my neighborhood thrift store! I miss it. It was part of my life. I was there three days a week scouring the shelves for treasures. And I miss my Sunday morning gang. While I walked out of the store empty handed about 30% of the time, I have found so many amazing things there over the years. Some to resell and some to keep. (Maybe you have one of these sweet spots too!)

While I have many sources for my items, I realized that in the last six weeks 12 of the items that sold were from this thrift store. Twelve! Here’s a sampling…

I will always buy a nicely made quilt though they do not sell quickly for me. But I was sure this Elsa C. French hand-made cotton quilt would sell without trouble because of its desirable print and on-trend provincial style. I bought it in December 2019 and it sold in March 2020.

Paid $9.69, sold for $80 with free shipping.

I adore objects made of stone and they sell for me. This onyx vase had a classic shape and while I wasn’t wowed by it’s neutral coloring, I was sure it would find a home. (It was mailed to a law firm in New York City.)

Paid $6.69, sold for $50 plus shipping.

This marble vase, which sold a couple of days before the other one, was more to my taste. I loved the intriguing colors and the clean, modern shape.

Paid $7.19, sold for $50 plus shipping.

This small Miro puzzle lingered in my store forever (we are talking years!) which surprised me because it had such a cool image. (It took a pandemic for it to sell.) Needless to say I’m not buying puzzles anymore to resell.

Paid $4.00 (or so), sold for $20 plus shipping.

This 1977 signed Ettore “Ted” DeGrazia “The White Dove” print was a September 2019 find that sold a few weeks ago. The new owner loved it and left me a nice review. In general with artwork I am on less firm footing. My art knowledge is minimal so I tend to buy what I like and follow it up with research. And typically it’s long tail, though not always! That said, I love looking for it and have done pretty well. So I’ll keep artwork as part of my biz.

Paid $13, sold for $144 with free shipping.

This large brass ram’s head candleholder had a great exotic, boho vibe. It sold a few days after I listed it.

Paid $4.19, sold for $58 plus shipping.

Yup, I can wait to get back to thrifting and antiquing in person. (I’m even dreaming about it!) But a close second is to have lunch with my girlfriends. What joy to be able to linger over a delicious meal and catch up face to face.

How about you? What’s the first thing you’ll do when the world reopens??